BRUSSELS – Belgian authorities arrested a European lawmaker on Friday in connection with an investigation into cash for favors, the latest figure to be detained in a scandal that tore through the European Parliament since it came to light in December.
A spokesman for the Belgian public prosecutor’s office confirmed the arrest of lawmaker Marc Tarabella was part of a years-long investigation into whether lawmakers took bribes from Qatar and Morocco in exchange for legal action. whether the support measures are beneficial to the two countries politically and economically.
The arrest of Belgian Mr. Tarabella is hardly surprising: He and another legislator, Andrea Cozzolino of Italy, immunity was revoked last week by Parliament at the request of the Belgian authorities.
Mr Tarabella is accused of supporting “certain positions in the European Parliament in favor of a third country” over the past two years, in exchange for up to 140,000 euros, about $153,000, according to a report passed by legislators, who have access to confidential documents from the Belgian judiciary.
Mr. Cozzolino, who has not been taken into custody, Suspected about “accepting money in exchange for protecting the interests of foreign powers,” in particular by “preventing the passage of congressional resolutions that might harm” their interests. .
Earlier on Friday, Belgian police searched what they said was Mr Tarabella’s bank vault in the Belgian city of Liège, about 55 miles east of Brussels, as well as his offices in the city Anthisnes nearby, the prosecutor said in a statement.
After the hearing, scheduled for Friday, a judge will decide whether and how to charge Mr. Tarabella. The Belgian lawmaker has repeatedly declared his innocence and said he voted in favor of revoking his immunity.
“I asked for this immunity to be lifted from the very first days of this case, so that I can answer the investigators’ questions and help the judiciary unravel this case,” Mr. Tarabella said. .
Three people linked to the European Parliament were arrested in the investigation late last year: Eva Kaili of Greece, the former vice-president of the Parliament; Francesco Giorgi, her partner and a congressional aide; and Pier Antonio Panzeri, a former legislator.
They are currently serving a prison sentence in Brussels and are accused of forming a criminal organization, corruption and money laundering. A fourth person, Niccolò Figà-Talamanca, head of a Brussels-based human rights organization, was charged and released, but he had to wear an electronic surveillance device.
Ms. Kaili has denied any wrongdoing through her attorney, as has Mr. Panzeri. Mr Giorgi has not yet commented.
A major breakthrough in the case came last month, when Mr Panzeri, whose wife and daughter was arrested in Italy and awaiting extradition, made a deal with the prosecutor to provide details in exchange for a lighter sentence. His wife and daughter have also denied any wrongdoing.
Mr Panzeri has been branded by Belgian authorities as a central figure in a web of corruption and has pledged to reveal the identities of others involved.
The corruption scandal could be the biggest in the history of Parliament, the only European Union institution where positions are directly elected.
Parliament is the least powerful of all the bloc’s institutions when it comes to foreign policy, but its resolutions can affect the reputations of countries, especially in the humanities sector. permission. The arrest late last year, the first in the case, happened to coincide with the men’s World Cup soccer tournament hosted by Qatar as part of a long-running effort to improve the country’s international standing.
